


Young One

by sirbuttsalot



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Conflicted Cinnamon Roll, Kylo and Hux have a child, Original Character(s), Post-Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Some ghosty bois
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-07
Updated: 2018-12-31
Packaged: 2019-03-15 04:43:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 6,093
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13605774
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sirbuttsalot/pseuds/sirbuttsalot
Summary: Supreme Leader Kylo Ren and General Armitage Hux's son has been kidnapped by the Resistance, and is being held as a prisoner of war. The two leaders of the First Order are terrified that their son is being tortured, but General Leia knows better than this...And simply wants to spend time with her grandson.





	1. Chapter One

"Let him out,"

"B-but General, he's too dangerous! He could easily kill us all!"

"He's also my grandson. I have faith in him. Now unlock the cell,"

"Y-yes, ma'am," the shaking man uneasily punched in a short code, which in turn slowly opened the closed off cell door.

Inside the cell sat a young boy, only thirteen years old, arms crossed and eyes closed. He wore what resembled an Imperial officer's uniform with a red First Order insignia on the left arm, and a black leather belt that used to hold a lightsaber, but was now empty.

Leia stepped inside the cell, motioning for the guard to leave. With a shaky nod, the guard left, leaving the cell door open and the two alone.

Without looking up, the boy spoke. "Hello, grandmother," his voice was slightly higher than what someone would expect, but monotone nonetheless.

"Hello, Xander. How are you?" Leia asked the boy, Xander. "I'm well. Care to explain why I've been shoved in a rusty old cell?" Xander replied, glancing up at Leia with a raised eyebrow.

Leia sighed. "I suppose I should apologise for that. This planet doesn't have the most luxurious containment facilities," "And your friends who oh so kindly picked me up from my home?" The redhead inquired.

*A Few Hours Earlier*

"Poe, I really don't think this is a good idea," Finn whispered to Poe as they snuck through the halls of the Star Destroyer.

"This is our mission, given to us directly from the General. All we need to do is pick him up and then get out of here," Poe whispered back.

"But this is Kylo Ren's son! A mini version of him who's probably just as strong! He could kill us in an instant!" 

"He's like 12, there's no way he could hurt us. The little shrimp's probably asleep right now anyway," Poe responded, swiftly stepping over to the door across the hall. "Besides, it's not like he has a lightsaber or anything," Poe punched in a override code to the door, readying his blaster in case of a fight.

As soon as the door opened, Xander stood with his silver lightsaber activated, immediately swinging it at the two.

The men screamed out of shock, backing away from the blade.

"You said he wouldn't have a lightsaber!" Finn shrieked. "Well sometimes I'm wrong!" Poe shrieked back as Xander swung at them again.

"Use stun! Use stun!" "I know I know!" Poe quickly set the blaster to stun and shot at the boy, missing a few times, as well as a few being blocked by the lightsaber.

Just as Xander rose his lightsaber to strike them, Poe rolled behind him and blasted him in the back.

Xander fell to the ground, stunned by the blast. His lightsaber fell from his hand, rolling across the floor towards Poe.

"Jeez kid, don't you know not to swing those things at people?" Poe picked up the weapon, then handed it to Finn. Xander growled, glaring at the two.

Picking him up, Poe slung Xander over his shoulder, standing up straight. "Alright, let's head out,"

*Present*

"Ah. That was Poe and Finn. Did they hurt you at all?" "Why do you care so much? I'm supposed to be one of the bad guys. Your enemy. Why are you being so nice?" Xander looked up fully at his grandmother, his deep brown eyes showing no emotion.

Leia gave a small smile, kneeling down to Xander's sitting level.

"Because you're still my grandson. Whether you're the 'bad guy' or not, I still love you," Xander's expression softened for only a moment at his grandmother's words, but then fell back into its original stoic form, his eyebrows slightly furrowed.

Leia laughed quietly. "You know, you remind me of Han in some ways,"

"G-grandpa...?" Xander froze up at the mention of his grandfather's name. Leia frowned slightly.

"Oh sweetie, you were there when it happened, weren't you?"

"N-no... but I felt it. I... I still don't understand why..." Xander focused his gaze onto the ground, curling his hands into fists. Leia placed her hand over Xander's lightly.

"Your father is a conflicted man. He blindly took orders from someone who was only using him for power. But he's changing. And so are you," Leia spoke softly. "I can feel the conflict in both of you. But you, Xander... you have the power to put an end to all of this. You can stop the wars, you can stop this mindless killing of innocent people. You just need to find in your heart where you stand," Leia stood up, offering a hand to Xander to help him stand up as well.

"Wh-what..?" "I'm not going to keep my grandson cooped up in a dirty jail cell. Come on, let's get something for you to eat,"


	2. Chapter Two

“Grandma, they’re all staring at me,” Xander whispered nervously as he and Leia walked down a large hallway. The walls were made of dark, rough rock, and people littered the area, making Xander nervous.

“They won't hurt you, sweetie. Not while I'm still here,” Leia whispered back. “And even if they tried, you're strong. You can defend yourself,”

“That's not very reassuring, grandma,” Xander grumbled. “And that’s not exactly what I'm worried about…” he trailed off, looking at the ground in front of him.

“What is it then, dear?” Leia asked as they turned the corner. “What if… what if they think I'm…” Leia put her hand on Xander’s shoulder, causing him to look up at her, confused.

“They all know you're a boy. The times that I've spoken of you, I made sure to emphasize the fact that you're a boy,” Leia smiled gently. “You've talked about me?” Xander inquired. “Of course I have. You're my grandson,” Xander simply nodded.

“But I have one more question,” “Ask away,” Xander paused, thinking for a moment. “How did you find out about me? I thought that dad was trying to keep me a secret from you guys,”

“Well-” Leia was interrupted by a voice calling from across the hall.

“It was actually Rey that saw you when Starkiller was still around,” Poe stated as he walked towards the two. “She said she saw a cute little kid running around trying to find his mommy,”

“I didn't say that,” Rey countered, entering the hall from behind the three. Xander growled, glaring at them both and clenching his fists. Leia noticed this, placing her hand on his shoulder again. “Xander, it's fine,” she whispered to him. Ignoring his grandmother’s consolidation, Xander stepped in front of Rey, looking up at her with anger in his eyes.

“You hurt my dad,” Poe stepped between them. “Kid, calm down. Your dad-” Xander shoved his hand in Poe’s direction, using the force to push him to the other end of the hall and into the wall. The few others in the hall gasped. “Don't say shit about my dad!” Xander shouted, using the force again to shove Poe to the ground.

Rey grabbed Xander by the arms, holding them behind his back. “Let go of me, Resistance scum!” He shouted, struggling against her grip. “Give me back my lightsaber, I'll kill all of you!”

Leia sighed, shaking her head. “Xander, please calm down. I don't want to put you back in the cell,”

“You might as well just do it now! I'm not gonna calm down!”

\---

Closing the cell door, Leia sighed once again. “Xander, I don't want to do this to you, you know this. But as of now, you're considered a threat to the Resistance,”

Rey crossed her arms. “And as much as I enjoy watching you throw Poe across the room, we really can't keep letting you do that,”

“Just go already. If I'm a threat, you'll want to stay as far away as possible from me,” Xander said, sitting in the same spot he sat in when he was first put in the cell.

Leia and Rey glanced at each other, and Leia locked the cell door reluctantly.

“Xander-”

“Just leave me alone already!”

And with that, they left. As they walked down the hall away from the cell, Leia held her face in her hands, exhaling deeply. “This is almost exactly how Ben was before we sent him to train with Luke,”

Xander, in the cell, finally lost his angry facade. He pulled his knees up to his chest, sobbing quietly. A few minutes passed, and a faint blue light filled the cell.

Looking up, Xander wiped the tears from his eyes. “Great gramps, what's wrong with me?”

Standing before the boy was the ghost of Anakin Skywalker, Xander’s great grandfather.

“Xander, nothing is wrong with you. You're still a kid with conflicted emotions, you have the right to express them,” Anakin said.

“But I hurt somebody! Again! I don't like it!”

“Well he did kind of deserve it,” Anakin sat down in front of Xander. “But that's besides the point. No matter what side you're on, light or dark, people are going to get hurt,”

“But I don't want people to get hurt. Dad already killed grandpa Han, great uncle Luke is dead too… why does everyone have to die?!”

“Xander, we've talked about this. People will always die. Especially-” “Especially during times of war, I know. I just wanna know why it has to be my family,” Xander sighed, focusing his gaze on the ground.

“Death takes whoever it wants. There's no way to avoid it. All you can do is cherish who you have now,” Anakin said, placing a ghostly hand on Xander’s shoulder. The boy looked up at his great grandfather, wiping another tear from his eye.

“You mean like grandma…?” Anakin nodded, pushing some of Xander’s orange hair behind his ear.

“But will she forgive me? After what I did?” “You're her grandson. She loves you. Of course she'll forgive you. Now do that cool thing I showed you and talk to her,” Xander smiled, nodding.

And with that, Anakin disappeared and the room was dark once again.

Xander sat upright, his legs crossed, hands folded, and eyes closed. Taking in a deep breath, he focused his energy.

One moment he was in the cell, and the next he was in the same room as Leia.


	3. Chapter Three

Leia gasped, almost falling off the chair she was sitting in at the sight of her grandson suddenly appearing in the room right in front of her. “Xander! How did you get in here?!”

Xander stood up from his sitting position on the floor. “Great Grandpa Anakin taught me how to teleport a while ago. But that’s not important, grandma I need to-” “Anakin?? As in Darth Vader??” “Well he prefers Anakin now because he isn’t-” “He talks to you?? Does Ben know that-”

“Grandma! Listen!” Xander groaned in frustration. “Yes, he talks to me all the time. He and Master Yoda would play with me when I was younger because mom and dad were busy a lot. And no, dad doesn’t know that he talks to me, but that is completely besides the point. I need to apologise for what I did. I lost my temper and I guess I should apologise to Poe too...” Xander grumbled the last part quietly.

“Xander, to be honest I'm still in shock that you were able to teleport into this room, more or less that you talk to your great grandfather’s ghost on a regular basis,” Leia said, standing up from the chair.

“Well it's not just great gramps. There's Master Kenobi, Master Qui Gon, Master Yoda. It's a whole fiesta,” Xander spoke quickly, then sighed. “But seriously, I need to apologise. Grandma, I'm sorry I lost my temper and threatened to kill you. And if I have to apologise to Poe then I will, but I won't if I don't have to,”

“Sweetie, thank you for apologising. I know that you wouldn’t ever purposely try to hurt me. But firstly, Poe may not forgive you as easily,” “I don’t want him to anyway,” “-and secondly, you’re still considered a threat,”

“WHAT!? How?? I said sorry! I even said I’d apologise to Poe! What more do you need??” Xander shouted angrily. “Xander, please calm down. Just breathe for a second,” Leia spoke calmly, giving Xander a pleading look.

Xander sighed, lowering his gaze to the ground. “Sorry…” he shook his head, then looked back up at Leia. “Ok, I'm calm. Why am I still considered a threat?”

“For one, you put Poe in a medical bed with three broken ribs,” “Ha!” “And after what everyone had seen you do, they’re terrified of what you’re capable of. They only see you as the son of Kylo Ren,”

“But I’m more than that! I’m my own person!” “And I understand that. You’re Xander Ren. A boy with so much more potential than anyone lets onto. But you and I are the only ones who think this way. To everyone else, you’re the evil son of Kylo Ren. And we can’t change how they think,” Leia sighed sadly.

“But I don't see you like that,” Rey said as she stepped through the doorway. “You're just a kid. You have feelings too. It doesn't matter who your parents are, you're your own person,” Rey smiled gently as Xander.

“But if you don't mind me asking, who's your mother?” “I do mind,” Leia lightly smacked Xander on the shoulder with a glare.

“Fine, my mom’s name is Armitage Hux,” Xander said, crossing his arms. Both Leia and Rey froze.

“As in… General Hux…?” Rey asked. Xander nodded. “How does that even-” “Rey, please don't ask too many questions. I don't want to confuse him,” Leia whispered to Rey.

“Confuse me about what?” “Nothing, sweetie, are you hungry? I'm sure you must be hungry,” Leia smiled, trying to divert the subject.

“Actually, yeah I am. Is there any ice cream?” Xander asked politely. “Somewhere, I'm sure. Why don't you stay in here with Rey while I go get some?” Leia offered.

“I don't wanna make you go get it for me though. I can go look for… oh right… I'm still a threat…” Xander slumped down into a chair, looking down at the ground.

Rey placed a hand on Xander’s shoulder. “You can hang out with me while you wait,”

Xander growled, smacking Rey’s arm away. “Why would I want to hang out with you?” “Xander, your temper,” Leia reminded Xander, who sighed angrily.

“Fine…” Xander grumbled while Rey smiled. Before she stepped out the door, Leia said “Please don't kill each other while I'm gone,”

And with that, Leia left the room. Rey sat down in a chair next to Xander, who scooted slightly to the side to get away from her.

“Hey, you don't have to hate me. We can be friends,” Rey offered. Xander scoffed, crossing his arms. “Again, why would I want to be friends with you?”

“Well one, you're stuck here until your parents come and get you,” “I hope they get me soon,” “And two, if you think about it, we're not that different,”

“How? We're on two completely opposite sides of the force. There's nothing similar about us,” Xander said. “That's just it. The force has us divided, but we're both confused as to where we should be,” Rey responded.

“You're confused? About what?” Xander turned to Rey. “Well, I've read the old jedi texts and-”

“Excuse me? Is General Organa in here?” a small voice called from the doorway. Standing shyly behind the door frame was a young blonde girl, about the same age as Xander, holding a small box.

“Sorry, Amber. She left a little bit ago to go get something. She should be back soon though,” Rey said. “Oh. Do you think you could take this to her?” the girl, Amber, asked, stepping into the room.

“Well, I don't think I should be leaving this room. I have to… monitor things…” Rey hesitated, looking back at Xander, who was eyeing the new girl strangely. “Actually, maybe I can. Will you do me a favor and watch my friend for me? He can't be left alone for too long,”

Amber thought for a moment, then nodded.”Sure, I guess,” Rey smiled, standing up. Amber handed her the box, then walked further into the room, brushing past Rey as she left to deliver the box.

“So… your family didn't like your force sensitivity?” Xander asked out of the blue. “Wh-what? H-how do you know about my family? And how did you know I'm force sensitive?” Amber asked, shocked.

“Let's just say I'm a little force sensitive myself,” Xander said, pushing a wheeled chair over to Amber with just a flick of his fingers, purposefully exposing the red First Order insignia on his shoulder in the process. Amber grabbed the rolling chair, shoving it aside angrily.

“You're… you're with the First Order, aren't you?” Amber growled. “Right on the mark. Ever heard of the Son of Ren?” Amber simply glared at Xander. “Well you're looking at him,”


	4. Chapter Four

Stepping closer to Xander, Amber clenched her fists by her sides. “Your father killed my family!” she shouted. “Oops,” Xander shrugged with a sly grin.

“That's all you have to say?! First you invade my thoughts, then you have half the mind to tell me you're the son of the man who killed my family?! And all you say is oops?!”

“Am I supposed to apologise or something?” Xander leaned back in his chair. Amber growled, swiping her hand in front of her, which pushed the chair out from under Xander. “Ow, shit!”

“Your father is a monster and so are you!” Grabbing the collar of his shirt, Amber lifted Xander up to his feet. “You don't know what you're getting yourself into,” Xander grumbled, shoving the blonde across the room and into the wall.

Amber slid down the wall, groaning in pain and holding the back of her head. She looked up, only to see Xander right in front of her with an outstretched arm, and silver lighting engulfing his hand.

“I told you. You don't know what you're getting yourself into,” before he could raise his arm to strike Amber, an outside force pushed Xander almost all the way across the room.

Standing in the doorway was Rey, her hand pointed in Xander’s direction. She rushed to Amber’s side, bending down to her level.

“Amber, I am so sorry. Are you ok? How much did he hurt you?” Rey lifted Amber gently to her feet, examining her for any injuries. “I'm fine…” Amber mumbled, rubbing the back of her head.

“Come on, let's get you an ice pack. Xander, stop being a dick and wait for your grandma. You'll have to talk to her about this,” Rey said, leading Amber out of the room.

Once the girls were gone, Xander fell to his knees, tears falling from his eyes. He covered his face with his arms, mumbling to himself. “Great gramps, I need to talk to you again…”

The same blue light from before filled the room, and Xander lifted his head to see his great grandfather's ghost once again.

“I messed up again… I hurt someone…” Anakin placed his hand on Xander’s cheek in a reassuring way. “Xander, please don’t beat yourself up over this,” “But I keep hurting people! I hate it!”

“You can’t let your emotions get the best of you, Xander. They may help you in some ways, but when they get too strong, you could end up hurting yourself or someone else,” Anakin spoke softly. “I know that… but how? How do I control my emotions? Why… why can’t I just be normal…?”

“Xander… there’s no such thing as normal. What you think is normal is someone else’s different. You’re unique in your own ways, which is what makes you who you are. As for controlling your emotions, that’s a journey you’ll have to take on your own. I can only help you so much in discovering who you are. Now please, don’t be so mean to yourself about these things. Remember, you’re still learning,” And with that, the blue light dimmed to nothingness.

Sighing, Xander shifted from his knees to sit criss cross on the floor. He waited in silence for a few minutes with his head down, until Leia walked into the room with a forlorn expression.

“Xander…” Leia spoke. “I know… back in the cell…?” Xander kept his gaze locked on the ground. “Actually, I have somewhere else for you to go,” Leia smiled slightly.

\---

“Grandma, it’s hot out here,” Xander complained as he and Leia rode in a speeder down the sandy desert regions of the planet. “I know, sweetie. We’re almost there, just hold on,” Leia responded.

“Where is ‘there’ exactly?” Xander asked. “You’ll see. You might want to take off your jacket if you don’t want to have a heat stroke,” Xander hummed in agreement, taking off his belt and jacket. Underneath was a gray tank top and slightly visible bandages across his chest.

After a few more minutes, the two arrived at a small oasis between a few large desert rocks.

“Why are we here? Why didn't you just put me back in the cell?” Xander questioned. “I figured that the heat may be getting to you, so you can relax here and not have to worry about the stresses from being at the base for a while,” Leia smiled, assisting Xander out of the speeder.

They stepped through the lush trees and bushes of the oasis, to which the center was a large clear blue lake.

“Wow… it's beautiful…” Xander whispered. “It really is. Do you want me to stay with you? Or do you want to be alone?” Leia asked. “I… think I'd like to be alone… please,” “Alright, sweetie. If you need me, just use this,” Leia handed Xander a small handheld communication device.

“Thank you… I’m sorry, grandma…” Leia placed a hand on Xander’s shoulder, giving him a loving smile. “It’s alright, Xander. Just go relax, I won’t be far,” Leia said, turning and leaving through the trees.

Xander stepped closer to the water, sitting down near the edge. A faded blue light appeared behind him, and he sighed.

“Hi guys…” Behind Xander stood the ghosts of Anakin, Obi Wan, Qui Gon, and Yoda.

“You don’t have to be so down about this, Xander. You’re allowed to be angry sometimes, you know,” Obi Wan spoke. “But I keep hurting people… I hurt Poe, I hurt Amber… I wanted to be her friend, and now she probably hates me…” Xander mumbled, keeping his gaze locked on the rippling water in front of him.

“If you wanted to be her friend, why did you attack her?” Qui Gon asked gently. “I didn’t mean to… I guess… I guess I let my pride get the best of me. She was talking crap about my dad and I let it get to me,” Xander sighed, tracing his hand around in circles in the wet sand.

“That’s probably my fault. I guess you got it from me. Sorry about that, kid,” Anakin chuckled embarrassedly. Obi Wan smacked Anakin on the arm. “Anakin, no. Xander, it may be a family trait, but don’t use it as an excuse to hurt others,”

“I know…”

“A family trait it may be, but a true reason for this behavior there is,” Yoda said. “There is? What is it? Is there a way to fix it?” Xander quickly turned around to face the four ghosts.

“Confused, you are. Answers, you seek. More confusion, you find,” Yoda spoke. “Confused? About what? And holy force, it’s getting hot. I’m taking this thing off,” Xander swiftly removed his tank top, which underneath revealed his chest wrapped in off-white bandages. “I’m sorry, continue,”

“What he’s saying is that you want to know which side you stand on,” Qui Gon said. “In better terms, do you stand with the light side or the dark side. Your parents raised you with the views that they had. They taught you in the ways of the dark side. But now that you’re with your grandmother, you’re having second thoughts as to who you really stand with,”

Obi Wan nodded in agreement. “Although Anakin has been teaching you both the jedi and the sith ways of fighting since you were little, you’ve never seen the light side before. And now, that’s all you can see,”

“And since I’ll have to cut this short, I’ll just say this,” Anakin knelt down to Xander’s level, placing a ghostly hand on his orange hair. “You don’t always have to choose. You can compromise,” Anakin gave Xander a kiss on the forehead in a fatherly manner, then he and the others disappeared.

“Xander? Are you still here?” Leia called from behind the trees and bushes. “I have someone who wants to talk to you,” “W-wait, hold on!” before he could put his shirt back on, a familiar blonde stepped through the trees.


	5. Chapter Five

“O-oh my gosh, I’m sorry,” Amber covered her eyes, a slight blush appearing on her cheeks. Xander quickly pulled his tank top back over his head, covering his bandaged chest. “I-it’s fine. You can look now,” Xander said, standing up.

“You sure?” “Yes, I’m positive I’ve put my shirt back on,” Amber uncovered her eyes, shaking her head.

“Anyways, Xander… I need to apologise,” Amber stepped closer to Xander. “I’m… sorry for insulting your family. And trying to fight you. I shouldn’t have taken my anger out on you,”

Xander, in shock, remained silent. He stared at Amber for a moment, searching her for sincerity. When he found that she was telling the truth, he sighed.

“I guess I should apologise too. I’m sorry… for attacking you. I lost my temper. I have no excuse for doing that, and I hope you find it in your heart to forgive me,” Xander spoke quietly, looking Amber in the eyes throughout his apology.

Amber gave Xander a small smile, reaching her hand out for him to shake. “Do you think we can be friends?” Xander smiled back, shaking Amber’s hand. “I’d love to,”

“Race you back to the speeder?” Amber smirked. “You're on,” and with that, the two burst off out of the oasis, laughing and giggling.

\---

“So the kids finally made up?” Rey asked Leia as they watched Xander and Amber play fight in the next room over. They both wielded large wooden sticks that they picked up on the way back to the base from the oasis. Xander was teaching Amber proper lightsaber techniques, then practice fighting, all while laughing together.

“Yes. I’m glad that they’re happy,” Leia smiled, glancing up at the clock on the wall and stepping into the room. “Alright kids, it’s lunch time, put the sticks down,”

“Aw, but I was just about to teach her something cool,” Xander whined. “You can finish teaching Amber after lunch. Don’t you want ice cream?” Leia asked. “Ice cream!” Xander and Amber shouted in sync, immediately dropping the sticks and bursting off to the small mess hall. Rey and Leia followed behind them, laughing quietly at their excitement.

Once they arrived at the mess hall, the kids were already sitting in the chairs while repeatedly chanting “Pound on the table! Shout really loudly!”

The few people around them laughed at the kids behavior as they all ate their food. “You know, I don't think I've seen everyone this happy before,” Leia commented, grabbing some food for Amber and Xander, along with two small bowls of ice cream.

“You think it's because of the kids?” Rey asked, smiling at the two thirteen year olds as they continued to chant. “I do. They really seem to be lightening the mood,” Leia smiled as well, walking over to the two and handing them their food.

“Thank you, grandma!” Xander grinned, quickly shoving a spoonful of ice cream into his mouth. “Thank you, grand- I mean General Leia,” Amber corrected herself, then began to eat. “You’re welcome, kids. You two enjoy your food,” Leia said, stepping back over to where Rey was standing.

“So… when do you think they’re gonna come get him? The First Order, that is,” Rey spoke in a quiet tone, so that the kids couldn’t hear her.

“Within the next couple of days, probably. I’m sure they’ve already noticed that he’s gone. It won’t be long until they find out where he is, considering they’ve put a tracking device on him,” Leia sighed. “They have?” Rey asked. “Yes, Poe noticed it when he and Finn were bringing him here,”

“They really do care about him, don't they?” Rey glanced over at Xander, who was laughing at a joke that Amber had told him.

“They'll do whatever it takes to get him back. But it's up to Xander to decide whether he wants to go back,” Leia looked over at the kids as well.

“What do you mean? Won't he be more than eager to be with his parents again?”

“I think he’ll be stuck. He’s taken a liking to Amber, and when they come to get him, it will be hard for him to say goodbye,” Leia looked back at Rey, placing a hand on her shoulder.

“Please watch over both of them. I want Xander to have more than one friend in his life, even if it's only for a few days,”

Rey nodded with a small smile. “I will,”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short chapters galore, sorry about that. I'm getting to a long one soon, trust me. It'll be good, I swear.


	6. Chapter Six

“So I'm gonna hit you like this, and you're gonna…?”

“Counter and hit back! Like this!”

“Great. But keep your footing like this-" Xander adjusted Amber’s footing. “-because you won't be able to get a solid hit if you do that,”

Amber nodded, mentally taking note of what to do next time.

“Now let's try that again. Ready?”

“Yep!”

The two continued sparring with the same sticks they had picked up at the oasis. Xander had almost forgotten that he didn't have his lightsaber on him, but he was okay with that. He was having fun and that's what matters.

All that Xander really wanted was a friend. As a child, he didn't get to have much fun. He was either busy training, or simply alone in his room, talking to the ghosts of the previous jedi order. His parents were usually doing important First Order things, rarely could they make time for their son.

The few “friends" he had were only some stormtroopers that would find him wandering around alone, and then take him back to his room. He would talk to them along the way, giving them names and learning what little he could learn about them. He could easily tell them apart by reading their force signatures, so remembering who was who was simple.

When some of them wouldn't come back after a battle, it broke Xander’s heart, because he knew how easily they could be replaced in the eyes of his parents. They were only stormtroopers to them, but to Xander, they were real people who deserve to be treated as such.

When he was much younger, about five or six years old, he would attempt to practice force persuasion on some of the stormtroopers. And it didn't actually work most of the time, but they couldn't let the little five year old think what he was doing wasn't working. So they went along with it.

*Flashback*

The five year old stepped up to the stormtroopers standing in the hallway outside her room, little orange pigtails in her hair and everything.

“Is everything alright, Cecilia?” one of the troopers asked, bending down to the child’s height.

“You will get me a juice box,”

“Excuse me?”

“I said, you will get me a juice box,” she waved her hand in a small motion. The stormtrooper was puzzled, not exactly sure what the daughter of Ren was doing. But then it soon clicked in his head that she was attempting force persuasion, and he didn't know what to do.

So he went along with it.

“I will… get you a juice box,” he hesitated, but stood back up and left to get a juice box for the redhead.

He returned a few minutes later with a small fruit flavored juice box, bending down and handing it to the grinning child.

She patted the trooper's helmet, then skipped back to her room while enjoying her juice box.

*Present*

Xander cringed internally at the memory, thinking back to how clueless he used to be. And how feminine he used to act.

He shook off the thought, not wanting to think back too much on his childhood.

“Xander? Are you alright?” Amber asked, lowering her stick and standing up straight. Xander nodded in response, doing the same as Amber.

“Do you think we should take a break?”

“Well, not unless you want to. My dad would spar with me for a lot longer than this, even without breaks,”

“No breaks? Why?” Amber layed her stick on the ground, sitting down next to it. Xander simply dropped his stick next to him, plopping onto the ground as well.

Xander sighed, tucking his legs in to sit criss cross. “He just wants me to be as strong as I can be. I mean, I'm used to it anyway. I've been training ever since I was able to walk,”

Amber tilted her head in confusion. “That seems like a bit early to start training, doesn't it?”

Xander shrugged. “Like I said, I'm used to it. And according to my great gramps, that's what they did with all the jedi kids way back when. Some of them starting even earlier than me,”

“Who's your great grandpa? And how would he know?”

Xander simply gave her a look that said ‘for real?’

“What?”

“Anakin Skywalker,”

“Who?”

Xander sighed. “Darth Vader,”

Amber sat in thought for a few moments until it finally clicked in her head. “Ohhhhh… riiiiiight,”

“Theeere you go. Get it now?” Amber nodded. “So you're a Skywalker?” she asked.

“Well, yeah, but the name hasn't been passed down-”

“But isn't your last name Ren?”

“It's Ren-Hux, and-”

“So wait, shouldn't you have like three last names?”

“Oh my force, Amber stop asking so many questions!” Xander groaned. “And for your information, I would have six last names. Ren-Hux-Organa-Solo-Amidala-Skywalker,”

“Amidala?” “My great grandmother, Padme,”

“How do you know all this?”

“I talk to their force ghosts. They taught me a lot of things that I know my dad would never tell me,” Xander sighed, falling back and laying on the ground with his hands behind his head.

Amber scooted closer to him. “Like what?”

“Well… nobody knows that I know this, but… I had a sister,” Xander closed his eyes.

“Had? What happened to her?”

“She… she died. She had some disease that nobody could identify. She was only five years old. What's weird though is that I've never seen her force ghost before,”

“Oh… I'm sorry to hear that…”

“It's alright. I never knew her anyways. Hey, you wanna go bug Poe?”

“Sure, why not,” the kids stood up, rushing out the door, hand in hand, to go bother Poe. As they ran down the halls of base, they passed Rey, who called out to them.

“Hey, where are you kids going?” Rey asked, turning around to face the running children.

“We’re gonna go bug Poe!” Amber giggled. “Shh, don't tell her!” Xander whisper-yelled.

“You probably shouldn't. He's still recovering from the incident,” Rey said, crossing her arms. The kids stopped running and turned around.

“Aww, come on Rey! Can't we have a little fun?” Amber whined. “You can bother him after he's healed, but for now, find something else to do,” Rey looked down, seeing the kid's holding each others hands, and smiled softly.

“What? Why are you smiling?” Xander asked, glancing down at where Rey was looking, which were his and Amber's intertwined hands. He blushed, yanking his hand back.

Rey chuckled. “Oh, nothing. Why don't you go play with Poe's droid while you wait?”

“Poe has a droid?” Xander asked.

“Yeah! BB-8! He's an astromech droid!” Amber said excitedly. She really likes BB-8.

“I know what kind of droid that is, I had my own when I was younger. Why would we want to play with Poe's stupid droid?” Xander crossed his arms.

Rey leaned over and whispered in Xander's ear. “You could probably reprogram him to mess with Poe,”

Xander looked up at Rey, then chuckled darkly. “Great idea. Come on, Amber, let's go!” Xander grabbed Amber's hand again, and they rushed down the hall.


End file.
